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Being a Dad, More Than Just a Repair Man
March 30th, 2012You might feel that as a dad, your job is to simply follow your little tornadoes of energy around and put back the pieces of the things they tear apart. But the truth is that being a dad is so much more. I hope you have a big head because as a dad you will wear the hats of coach, bodyguard, referee, taxi driver, teacher, and disciplinarian. While this may seem like a lot of work, it really, really is. The best thing a father can offer his children is consistency and availability.
While a mother’s role is typically to nurture, feed, clean, and emotionally support children, fathers are typically seen as the authority figure that sets rules, assigns work, and doles out discipline. While these are old gender roles, they are beginning to change especially with more women entering the workforce. However, the way in which fathers interact with their children in general is still pretty much the same.
A father generally offers consistency in rules, expectations, and discipline. A father drives physical activities such as competitive games and work tasks. Fathers are more likely to set the pace and rules of activities than mothers, who will usually let the children set the pace and direction. Fathers will often suggest new games, set out challenges for children to accomplish, and lead by example.
Important things to do as a father are:
Make time for your children
Be involved in their daily activities
Provide emotional and physical support
Provide discipline in an effective and consistent manner
Demonstrate proper social behavior and actions
Teach children the value and benefits of hard work
Things you can do with your children:
Encourage them to complete things they have set out to do
Read to them every day
Tell them when they are behaving inappropriately
Be there when they need someone to talk to
Tell them they love them
Being involved means being there, paying attention, and generally supporting your children at everything they do. This really takes a lot of time and attention. That is really the heart of what being a dad is all about: time and attention. It will be really tiring physically and mentally to always be there and being attentive, but your kids will be able to tell if you are phoning it in and it will not make them feel very good.
So while you may sometimes feel like just an unpaid repair man, the time you put in with your kids is time well spent and even if they do not seem to notice it, it is having a great effect on them.
